Harrison to lead Canadian Pacific

Monday, July 02, 2012

Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) said Friday it had named Hunter Harrison president, chief executive officer, and a member of its board of directors.
William Ackman of Pershing Square Capital, who led a successful proxy fight at CP earlier this year resulting in a new set of directors and prompting the resignation of CP CEO Fred Green, had indicated that he planned to hire Harrison to lead the company.
Harrison, 67, is the former CEO of CP's main rival, Canadian National Railway, and was widely praised for his leadership at that company.
CN had bristled at Ackman's plan to hire its former leader earlier this year, issuing a statement in January that "as part of his employment contract with CN, Mr. Harrison agreed, upon retirement as president and chief executive officer on Dec. 31, 2009, to be bound by a broad range of confidentiality and multiyear non-competition and non-solicitation provisions.”
However, Ackman told the Bloomberg news service at the time that the warning from CN was "absolutely frivolous." - Chris Dupin